Democratic Supporters Down 26 Percentage Points
Republican Supporters Up from 85% Last Year to 92% This Year
Pride among Americans has been found to be declining sharply, in stark contrast to the strong sense of national pride Americans have shown in the past.
On July 2 (local time), the Washington Post (WP) reported, citing the latest survey by polling firm Gallup, that "only 58% of Americans say they are 'extremely' or 'very' proud to be American." The survey was conducted from June 2 to June 19, before the US carried out airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, targeting 1,000 American adults.
This figure represents a 9 percentage point drop from last year's 67%, marking the lowest level since Gallup began this survey in 2001. From the first survey through 2016, over 80% of respondents expressed such pride, and at times, more than 90% said they were extremely or very proud to be American. However, the percentage fell into the 70% and then 60% ranges in subsequent years. This year, for the first time, it has dropped into the 50% range.
National pride has declined dramatically among Democratic supporters. While 62% of Democrats said last year that they were extremely or very proud, only 36% said so this year, a decrease of 26 percentage points. Among independents, the figure also dropped from 60% last year to 53% this year.
In contrast, the percentage of Republican supporters expressing strong pride increased from 85% last year to 92% this year. The 56 percentage point gap between Democrats and Republicans is also the largest since the survey began.
The data also showed that the younger the generation, the lower the proportion expressing strong national pride. Among Generation Z (born after 1996), an average of 41% expressed strong national pride between 2021 and 2025. For Millennials (born 1980?1996), the figure was 58%; for Generation X (born 1965?1979), 71%; for Baby Boomers (born 1946?1964), 75%; and for those born before 1946, 83% expressed strong pride.
Gallup analyzed, "In the early 21st century, nearly all American adults said they were extremely or very proud to be American, but over the past 25 years, national unity has weakened due to the complexities of political and generational change." The analysis continued, "Most of these changes have occurred over the past decade, amid pessimistic economic outlooks among younger generations, widespread dissatisfaction with the state of the country, negative images of both parties, and intense partisan conflict during the Trump and Biden administrations."
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